The effectiveness and safety of growth factors in the treatment of tympanic membrane perforations: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials

xlomafota13 shared this article with you from Inoreader The effectiveness and safety of growth factors in the treatment of tympanic membrane perforations: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials Via http://link.springer.com/journal/405,European archives of oto-rhino-laryngology,The European Federation of Oto-Rhino-Laryngological Societies (EUFOS) : affiliated with the German Society for Oto-Rhino Eur Arch Otorhinolaryngol. 2021 May 25. doi: 10.1007/s00405-021-06891-6. Online ahead of print. ABSTRACT PURPOSE: To determine the clinical efficacy and safety of growth factors in the treatment of tympanic membrane (TM) perforations from randomized controlled trials (RCTs). METHODS: Databases, including PubMed, EMBASE, Cochrane library, Ebsco, Ovid, Scopus, and Web of Science, were searched for articles in any language about studies on the treatment of TM perforations with growth factors. Inclusion criteria were: (1) randomized controlled trials (RCTs); (2) only patients with TM perforations included; and (3) any kinds of growth factors or related products were used as an intervention. Exclusion criteria were: (1) study was not reported as a full paper, only as an abstract; (2) review studies and case reports; and (3) an inability to extract valid data. Outcomes of interest included perforation closure rate, closure time, hearin g improvement, and complications. RESULTS: Nineteen RCTs with a total of 1335 participants were included. Growth factors effectively increased the rate of perforation closure [risk ratio (RR): 1.21 95% confidence interval (1.12, 1.30), p < 0.01] and shortened closure time [mean difference (MD): - 16.71 (- 22.74, - 10.15), p < 0.01]. There was no significant difference in hearing improvement [MD: 0.10 (- 0.50, 0.70), p = 0.74] or complications [RR: 1.49 (0.96, 2.32), p = 0.07] between the growth factor intervention group and the control group. CONCLUSION: Growth factors are effective and safe in the treatment of TM perforations. However, better designed clinical trials should be carried out in the future to obtain more robust findings about the effectiveness of growth factors in the treatment of TM perforations. PMID:34032907 | DOI:10.1007/s00405-021-06891-6 View on the web Inoreader. Take back control of your news feed. Follow us on Twitter and Facebook.